By Allie Bidwell www.chronicle.com

Deep federal spending cuts that both Democrats and Republicans had hoped to avoid were set into motion March 1, as Congress failed to act in time to prevent or postpone the reductions. The $85-billion cut to the federal budget, known as sequestration, leaves colleges uncertain about how reductions in federal appropriations will affect them.

Leading up to the deadline, university leaders and advocacy groups urged Congress to head off the sequester. Both parties introduced bills in a last-ditch effort to avoid the cuts—both of which failed to pass—and President Obama met with party leaders to discuss possible ways to reverse the sequester after it took effect. But all of those efforts failed to halt the first phase of cuts.

Click here to read the full article.